Search results matching tags 'Career' and 'Process'http://sqlblog.com/search/SearchResults.aspx?o=DateDescending&tag=Career,Process&orTags=0Search results matching tags 'Career' and 'Process'en-USCommunityServer 2.1 SP2 (Build: 61129.1)How I Prepare For Presentations, And My Speaking Schedule For This Quarterhttp://sqlblog.com/blogs/buck_woody/archive/2011/08/16/how-i-prepare-for-presentations-and-my-speaking-schedule-for-this-quarter.aspxTue, 16 Aug 2011 14:04:45 GMT21093a07-8b3d-42db-8cbf-3350fcbf5496:37845BuckWoody<p>I do a little speaking here and there and I’ve been asked about the method I use to get ready for a talk. I thought I might share the method I use, although as you read through this remember that not everyone has the same style, processes and procedures they use. As long as you feel prepared when you speak <em>and</em> the audience learns something from you, you’re doing it right. Still and all, it can be useful to see what someone else does to tune your process even further. Whatever makes your speaking better helps us all, including me, as I sit through quite a few presentations myself. </p> <p>I do several types of presentations, from working with my direct clients at Microsoft in a very targeted and interactive discussion all the way to a full semester of classes at the University of Washington that lasts for several weeks. I also speak at technical events, and in all of these the audience size an participation levels vary. Even so, I still follow roughly the same process: </p> <ul> <li>Develop The Concepts</li> <li>Create Animations</li> <li>Develop A Slide-A-Day</li> <li>Practice</li> <li>Tuning And Feedback</li> </ul> <p><em><strong>Develop The Concepts</strong></em></p> <p>When I’m asked to speak on a topic, I try and boil that down to one over-riding goal, such as “The listener should know how large-scale data sets can be handled”. Then I do a work-back outline of how that would happen - <em>introduction, terms, define the problem, explain the options, provide specifics, detail references</em> might be one example. Then I try to make that even tighter, until I start losing fidelity in the talk. </p> <p>This is where the duration of the talk and the audience makeup is most critical. The shorter the period of time I have to talk, the lower I set the goal. I’ve seen people try to cram a complex set of information in an hour, complete with demos. At the end I certainly have an exposure to the information, but I don’t know that I have retained it. I would rather the speaker focus on one specific part of that deep topic or simply provide an overview and then point me to relevant resources I can study in detail later. </p> <p>The key is what the audience retains when the talk is over. If they think “wow - that speaker is really smart” that’s actually a failure. They should think “wow - <em>I’m</em> really smart, and now I know how to do that thing the speaker talked about”.</p> <p>Each of these concepts then becomes a logical flow of mini-goals, and many times, these map to a slide or whiteboard graphic.</p> <p><em><strong>Create Animations</strong></em></p> <p>It doesn’t matter what tool you use - somehow you need to convey your information to the audience. In some cases, I can draw “word pictures” simply by talking, but technical topics often lead themselves to graphics. I’ve used whiteboards, Power Point (don’t make that face) and even Microsoft Paint with a Wacom Tablet. I try to show a start-to-finish process, or layer components to slowly cement in the listener’s mind what I want them to know. </p> <p>The rule of thumb I use is to show one piece of a system at a time, to show a larger more complex whole. To show how that system interacts with another, I use animations. All of these are done as simply as possible, using the least flashy animation I can. Any technology I use should be to get the point across, not to show how many fonts and explosions I can cram onto a screen. </p> <p>I find that almost every concept I developed in the previous step warrants it’s own slide or drawing. If I have too many, say more than 8 or so for a one-hour presentation, then I have too many concepts for a single presentation, or I’m making it too complex. If I have lots of lists on the screen and not many graphics, then I’m reading notes and not setting up a dialog with the audience. Creating a graphic per concept keeps me from many of these errors.</p> <p><em><strong>Develop A Slide-A-Day</strong></em></p> <p>Speaking isn’t my full-time job, so I have lots of “real” work to do. So after I’ve gotten the concepts down and turned them in to graphics, I take one slide each day when I can and work through the detail of the concept I’m talking about. If I’m using Power Point, I use the “Notes” view to put down the text I want to cover, the references I find on the web, in magazines and books, and the other speakers I credit during the presentation. I give that out electronically after the presentation, since I don’t want people focusing on my notes while I’m talking - I would much rather they listen carefully and take their own notes. Even so, sometimes there are processes or procedures that I need to show. When I don’t show it on the screen, I show it in the Notes view. If I’m using some other medium like a whiteboard, I usually blog the information and then show the link to my blog. </p> <p><em><strong>Practice</strong></em></p> <p>This is probably the most skipped step I see in new presenters. Yes, you have to sit in front of a mirror. Really. And yes, you have to say what you’re going to say, and time yourself. Really. It feel awkward, and it should. And you need to do this. Really. </p> <p>I use the “Presenter View” in Power Point. It has the slides (so that you can see the next one coming), the Notes you made, and a timer. It’s a great tool even if you aren’t going to use Power Point in your talk. </p> <p>But you have to practice. I try to practice my talk at least five times. Interestingly, this isn’t so I’ll say the same thing the same way every time. In fact, it’s quite the opposite. It helps me feel more confident in the information, and allows me to “wander” slightly during the talk and be more dynamic, because I know what I need to get across - I’ve practiced it. </p> <p><em><strong>Tuning And Feedback</strong></em></p> <p>If time permits, I try to deliver the talk at work or to my wife. I give the audience a feedback sheet with what I want to know, so that they will be critical without being mean. I try to do this with as many different audiences as I can. Based on what I hear back, I may adjust or tune a section to ensure that I get the information across. </p> <p>So what’s on that sheet? Well, things like “How was the speed? Did it seem like I knew what I was talking about” and so on - but there’s one part that is pretty interesting. I give them a test. I make questions that I should answer during the talk, and at the end I hand out the paper and see if they get those answers. If they don’t it’s my fault. End of story. I either picked people that don’t care about the topic, or don’t listen, or who aren’t interested in helping me. All of those are my bad. If I do an effective presentation, I move the knowledge of the topic from my head to theirs. That’s success.</p> <p><strong>Speaking Schedule</strong></p> <p>If you’re interested in seeing the result of this preparation style, I ‘d love to have you join me. I enjoy meeting the folks that read this blog, so if you’re near any of these events then stop by and say hello!</p> <p><em><strong>09/23-24/2011 - Orlando, Florida</strong></em></p> <p><em>SQL Saturday 85 - </em><a href="http://www.sqlsaturday.com/85/eventhome.aspx"><em>http://www.sqlsaturday.com/85/eventhome.aspx</em></a></p> <p>I have two presentations at this event:</p> <blockquote> <p>SQL Server Performance Tuning Using Application Path Analysis</p> <p>There are a lot of resources, products and features you can use to tune the performance of your SQL Server system. Many assume you’re familiar with 400-level concepts, others don’t consider the whole stack of the client, the network, the operating system, platform and the database server. Buck Woody, Microsoft’s real-world DBA, will explain a simple, repeatable process you can follow to tune your entire application – from the client to the server. All of the tools we’ll cover are included with Windows and SQL Server:</p> <p>In this pre-conference session you’ll cover not only the process, but also review a real-world evaluation. You’ll take home a system and a spreadsheet you can use to monitor and tune your applications, in a simple, easy-to-understand session. </p> </blockquote> <p>The Saturday event is:</p> <blockquote> <p>Cloud Computing De-mystified</p> <p>The cloud! Move everything to the cloud! No, wait, the cloud is awful! Don’t move anything to the cloud! Wait – what’s “the cloud”? Buck Woody, Microsoft’s “Real World DBA” will show you how to figure out where your data should live, based on actual decision points. You’ll learn about Windows and SQL Azure, and when it makes sense to put data locally or remotely.</p> </blockquote> <p><em><strong>10/08/2011 - Portland, Oregon</strong></em></p> <p><em>SQL Saturday 92 - </em><a href="http://www.sqlsaturday.com/92/eventhome.aspx"><em>http://www.sqlsaturday.com/92/eventhome.aspx</em></a></p> <blockquote> <p>Hybrid Database Systems</p> <p>With so much interest in Cloud technology, where does it really fit in, and what is the role of the DBA and Database Developer? What is available in SQL Azure, as it compares to SQL Server? Can you leave some data on-premise, and put other data in the cloud? Buck shows you the ins and outs of SQL Azure, how to connect to it, manage it, what the limitations are, and real-world examples of architectures that work.</p> </blockquote> <p><em><strong>10/11-14/2011 - Seattle, Washington</strong></em></p> <p><em>Professional Association for SQL Server (PASS) Conference - </em><a href="http://www.sqlpass.org/Events/PASSSummit.aspx"><em>http://www.sqlpass.org/Events/PASSSummit.aspx</em></a><em>&#160;</em></p> <blockquote> <p>Beyond the Hype - Hybrid Solutions for On-Premise and In-Cloud Database Applications</p> <p>Despite all the hype, it’s rare for a business to actually “move” an application directly to the cloud. The cost, risk and effort aren’t usually worth the benefit of what you gain. Security considerations, performance, and control are just a few of the reasons that many applications need to stay in your datacenter. But there are times when including a function from the cloud makes a ton of business sense, either to extend part of your internal applications to remote workers, customers or partners, or to act as a HA/DR solution.</p> <p>In this session, Buck Woody (Microsoft Senior Technology Specialist on Distributed Computing) will talk about how you can embrace Cloud on Your Terms through SQL Server Code Name &quot;Denali&quot; and Windows and SQL Azure architectures, and the considerations for creating a hybrid architecture across on-premise databases and cloud technologies. You’ll learn: </p> <p>How to create a decision matrix for which elements can be extended to the cloud</p> <p>A Windows and SQL Azure technology overview, code name Juneau, and DAC Fx </p> <p>Component options for hybrid solutions, including:</p> <ul> <li>SharePoint </li> <li>Biztalk</li> <li>.NET applications</li> <li>Non-Microsoft languages and technologies</li> <li>Other RDBMS’s</li> </ul> <p>You’ll receive references, whitepapers and other resources you can use to evaluate your own architectures to see how you can use a secure, high-performance system that expands and contracts as needed. </p> </blockquote> <p><em><strong>10/11/2011 - 12/14/2011 - Seattle, Washington</strong></em></p> <p><em>University of Washington - </em><a href="http://faculty.washington.edu/woodyg/"><em>http://faculty.washington.edu/woodyg/</em></a><em>&#160;</em></p> <blockquote> <p>SQL Server Essentials</p> <p>This course will introduce the student to Microsoft’s SQL Server database management system. Topics included are relational database concepts for production database applications, SQL programming, and SQL Server tools. This course will introduce advanced topics -- at an overview level -- that will be presented in more detail in subsequent courses. The course involves instruction, course studies, and a project that will be completed from requirements to delivery.</p> <p>During the course you will design a relational database structure from a set of business requirements, developing a graphical Entity Relationship Diagram (ERD), writing Transact-SQL code for the creation of all database tables, views, stored procedures, security, indexes and maintenance scripts for a sample system. Your final project will be the entire system creation, delivered as a series of scripts, along with the ERD and pertinent conceptual documents in a SQL Server Management Studio (SSMS) Solution.</p></blockquote>Head in the Clouds–Eyes on the Bookshttp://sqlblog.com/blogs/buck_woody/archive/2011/06/07/head-in-the-clouds-eyes-on-the-books.aspxTue, 07 Jun 2011 19:43:00 GMT21093a07-8b3d-42db-8cbf-3350fcbf5496:36120BuckWoody<p>I normally post technical topics here on this blog, but I&rsquo;m extending this post a bit to include a little professional development. Don&rsquo;t worry; there&rsquo;s some tech (and Distributed Computing tech, no less) in this post as well.</p>
<p>I recently presented a few sessions on a &ldquo;<a href="http://sqlcruise.com/" target="_blank">SQL Cruise</a>&rdquo; to Alaska (<a href="http://buckwoody.wordpress.com/2011/06/06/teaching-on-sql-cruise-day-one-seattle-and-the-sea/" target="_blank">more on that here</a>) and one of those sessions was on professional development. As part of that, I had everyone do some exercises on career building, and we created some deliverables we would be accountable to each other on. After all, one of my favorite business quotes (my version, others have said something similar) is:</p>
<p align="center"><span style="color:#c0504d;font-size:medium;"><strong><em><span style="text-decoration:underline;">What gets measured gets done.</span></em></strong></span></p>
<p>One of the deliverables was to establish our career goal(s) for the next year, and then come up with a list of 12 books that would help us get there. We promised to read one book per month, and report back on our blogs a review of the book and how it applies to the career. So in no particular order, here is my list &ndash; I&rsquo;m telling you all, so call me on it if I don&rsquo;t post a review on one of them. I reserve the right to change my list as I learn more, but 12 books is the rule:</p>
<ol>
<li><a href="http://www.amazon.com/Programming-Windows-Azure-Microsoft-Cloud/dp/0596801971/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&amp;qid=1307850128&amp;sr=8-1" target="_blank">Programming Windows Azure by Siriram Krishnan</a>: <span style="color:#008000;">Learning about how to select applications suitable for Distributed Technology. <a href="http://sqlblog.com/b/buckwoody/archive/2011/06/28/book-review-programming-windows-azure-by-siriram-krishnan.aspx" target="_blank">(June )</a></span></li>
<li><a href="http://www.amazon.com/Rhetoric-Aristotle/dp/1604444657/ref=ntt_at_ep_dpt_1">Rhetoric, by Aristotle</a>: <span style="color:#008000;">I read this long ago, but I would like to re-read it to learn how to more clearly formulate my arguments and help my writing skills to improve. <a href="http://sqlblog.com/b/buckwoody/archive/2011/07/28/book-review-book-2-rhetoric-by-aristotle.aspx" target="_blank">(July)</a></span></li>
<li><a href="http://www.amazon.com/Favorite-Folktales-Pantheon-Folklore-Library/dp/0394751884/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&amp;qid=1307477450&amp;sr=8-1" target="_blank">Favorite Folktales from Around the World, by Jane Yolen</a>: <span style="color:#008000;">Storytelling is at the heart of presenting well. <a href="http://sqlblog.com/b/buckwoody/archive/2011/08/31/book-review-book-3-favorite-folktales-from-around-the-world.aspx">( August )</a></span></li>
<li><a href="http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/0061353248/?tag=imreading-20">Predictably Irrational, Revised and Expanded Edition: The Hidden Forces That Shape Our Decisions, by Dan Ariely</a>: <span style="color:#008000;">Understanding the actions of others is key to my success. <a href="http://sqlblog.com/b/buckwoody/archive/2011/10/03/book-review-book-4-predictably-irrational.aspx" target="_blank">( September )</a></span></li>
<li><a href="http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B00295S2X6/?tag=imreading-20">The Cloud of Unknowing, Anonymous</a>:<span style="color:#008000;"> The role of faith in life. <a href="http://sqlblog.com/b/buckwoody/archive/2011/10/31/book-review-book-5-the-cloud-of-unknowing.aspx" target="_blank">( October )</a></span></li>
<li><a href="http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B001UE7DC8/?tag=imreading-20">Wikinomics: How Mass Collaboration Changes Everything, by Don Tapscott</a>: <span style="color:#008000;">I&rsquo;ve heard a lot about this, and I&rsquo;m not even sure I agree with it. But I want to see what it says about collaborative efforts and how I can leverage them. <a href="http://sqlblog.com/b/buckwoody/archive/2011/11/22/book-review-book-6-wikinomics.aspx" target="_blank">( November )</a></span></li>
<li><a href="http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/1449307116/ref=as_li_qf_sp_asin_tl?ie=UTF8&amp;tag=greenteapre01-20&amp;linkCode=as2&amp;camp=217145&amp;creative=399373&amp;creativeASIN=1449307116" target="_blank">Think Stats</a>:<span style="color:#008000;"> In my studies of "Big Data", the skill I find missing most of the time is Statistics - as part of the "Data Scientist" role I'm investigating, this is part of a kit you can get from O'Reilly. I actually replaced another book with this one. <a href="http://sqlblog.com/b/buckwoody/archive/2011/12/30/book-review-book-7-think-stats.aspx" target="_blank">( December )</a></span></li>
<li><a href="http://www.amazon.com/Elements-Persuasion-Storytelling-Better-Business/dp/0061179035/ref=pd_bbs_sr_1/104-8397785-8954328?ie=UTF8&amp;s=books&amp;qid=1187892925&amp;sr=8-1" target="_blank">The Elements of Persuasion by Richard Maxwell&nbsp; and Robert Dickman</a>: <span style="color:#008000;">Another "storytelling" book. <a href="http://sqlblog.com/b/buckwoody/archive/2012/01/30/book-review-book-8-the-elements-of-persuasion.aspx" target="_blank">( January )</a></span></li>
<li><a href="http://www.amazon.com/Designing-Data-Visualizations-Julie-Steele/dp/1449312284">Designing Data Visualizations by Noah Iliinsky and Julie Steele</a>: <span style="color:#008000;">Part of my "Big Data" focus. <a href="http://sqlblog.com/b/buckwoody/archive/2012/02/27/book-review-book-9-designing-data-visualizations.aspx" target="_blank">( February )</a></span></li>
<li><a href="http://www.amazon.com/The-Information-History-Theory-ebook/dp/B004DEPHUC/ref=sr_1_2?ie=UTF8&amp;qid=1333637893&amp;sr=8-2" target="_blank">The Information: A History, a Theory, a Flood by James Gleick:</a> <span style="color:#008000;">This is a book I've heard a lot about, and it's in a similar vein as GEB, one of my favorite books.</span> <a href="http://sqlblog.com/b/buckwoody/archive/2012/04/05/book-review-book-10-designing-data-visualizations.aspx" target="_blank">( March )</a></li>
<li><a href="http://www.amazon.com/Applied-Architecture-Patterns-Microsoft-Platform/dp/184968054X" target="_blank">Applied Architecture Patterns on the Microsoft Platform</a>: Using Microsoft products to solve a given problem. It includes Cloud strategies as well. ( <a href="http://sqlblog.com/b/buckwoody/archive/2012/05/15/book-review-book-11-applied-architecture-patterns-on-the-microsoft-platform.aspx" target="_blank">April</a> )</li>
<li><a href="http://www.amazon.com/Master-Plots-Build-Them-ebook/dp/B005LIYZJ8/ref=sr_1_1?s=digital-text&amp;ie=UTF8&amp;qid=1333638146&amp;sr=1-1" target="_blank">20 Master Plots by Ronald B. Tobias: </a>Stories and themes are part of software, presenting, and working in teams. This book claims there are only 20 plots, ever. Let's see. ( <a href="http://sqlblog.com/b/buckwoody/archive/2012/06/05/book-review-book-12-20-master-plots.aspx" target="_blank">May</a> )</li>
</ol>
<p>&nbsp;</p>
<p>As part of keeping each other accountable, I hereby tag a few of my fellow travellers &ndash; and <strong>you, of course, are invited to play along. Link back to this blog post and put your link in the comments below if you want us to follow your journey</strong>:</p>
<ul>
<li>&nbsp;Tim Ford: <a href="http://thesqlagentman.com/">http://thesqlagentman.com/</a>&nbsp;</li>
<li>John Halunen:</li>
<li>Dev Nambi: <a href="http://www.devnambi.com">www.devnambi.com</a></li>
<li>Grant Fritchey: <a href="http://www.scarydba.com/">http://www.scarydba.com/</a>&nbsp;</li>
</ul>Computer books are dead. Well, some of them, anyway.http://sqlblog.com/blogs/buck_woody/archive/2011/05/10/computer-books-are-dead-well-some-of-them-anyway.aspxTue, 10 May 2011 13:58:23 GMT21093a07-8b3d-42db-8cbf-3350fcbf5496:35551BuckWoody<p>I read a lot. I mean a LOT. It seems that computer professionals have much in common with medical professionals – we have to read in order to stay on top of our game. For me, this used to mean web sites, magazines, and other print medium, and of course lots of books. I’ve even <a href="http://buckwoody.com/BResume.html#Publications_and_Communications" target="_blank">written several computer books myself and had them published</a>. </p> <p>Whenever I teach a class, do a presentation, or hold an architectural design session on a new (or new to that person) technology, they usually follow up with “what’s a good book for learning X technology?” This happens so often that I have a list I keep of the titles I like for a particular subject – <a href="http://www.facebook.com/apps/application.php?id=2397701323&amp;ref=appd" target="_blank">you probably have similar book lists</a>.</p> <p>Windows, SQL Server, and other Microsoft products change on an average of around three or four year cycles. That’s enough time to play with a beta product, wait until it releases, and write a solid book about it, and have that in a decent market for sales, and allow people to read and recommend it. </p> <p><font color="#0000ff" size="3">Enter “the Cloud” – Distributed Computing.</font> </p> <p>Windows Azure and SQL Azure don’t release every three years. Changes – some of them dramatic – release <em>every three or four months</em>. You can’t even write a book that fast, much less update it that quickly and re-sell it. So what is a technical professional to do?</p> <p>Well, although I really like a couple of books I’ve read so far (especially this one, <a href="http://oreilly.com/catalog/0790145308795/" target="_blank">print and e-book version here</a>), they are out of date almost by the time they publish. Instead, I rely on blogs, the web, documentation from the vendor and how-to articles published online. Many of these, ironically, are stored, hosted or delivered using – wait for it – Windows Azure. That’s interesting because it’s a medium that describes itself – “reflection”, anyone? </p> <p>This brings up an interesting conundrum. Books have a version, are arranged, thought-out and categorized. Since I’m now getting information off of the web, it’s difficult to figure out whether that material is correct at the time, what level it’s aimed at – and forget about any coherent structure. It’s topic-by-topic. </p> <p>So, like most of you, I use links and favorites to arrange things. And I found myself making “virtual books” by essentially creating my own Table-Of-Contents. I’ve shared some of those, <a href="http://blogs.msdn.com/b/buckwoody/archive/2010/11/16/windows-azure-learning-plan.aspx" target="_blank">such as my Windows and SQL Azure Learning Plan</a>. The key is that I have to update that to ensure that the latest information is there – otherwise it becomes an organized list that is not authoritative.</p> <p>Don’t get me wrong – I still have tons of&#160; (e-book format) books, especially on “conceptual” topics like development paradigms and so on. But when it comes to specifics and how-to’s – electronic medium is best for me. It’s more current, adaptable, searchable, interactive and immersive than books. But how long will I retain regular print-type books? We’ll see. Times, they are a changing – fast.</p>Data Movement and the Decision Matrixhttp://sqlblog.com/blogs/buck_woody/archive/2010/04/27/data-movement-and-the-decision-matrix.aspxTue, 27 Apr 2010 12:15:24 GMT21093a07-8b3d-42db-8cbf-3350fcbf5496:24600BuckWoody<p>Maybe it’s my military background, or maybe I’ve always had this predilection, but I like to use two devices when I need to make a complex decision: A checklist and a decision matrix. I like to use a checklist because it ensures that I remember the big bits of what I need to do, and brings up questions or areas that I didn’t think about when evaluating options for the decision.</p> <p>And the decision matrix – that’s the thing I use to actually lay out those options. It’s simply a spreadsheet-like grid (I use Excel, but paper and pencil works as well) that lays out the requirements or advantages for the decision across the top, and the options I have on the left-hand side. Then in the “cells” I put whether or not that option on the left will meet the requirement in that column. I then simply “weight” each cell to organize the choices by best-fit. The right answer (or answers) will float right to the top.</p> <p>I was asked yesterday about options for moving data in SQL Server to another system. There are just dozens of ways to do this, from bcp to Replication, each with certain advantages and costs. But asking the questions for the top row first helped me show the person that it isn’t a particular technology that is important, it’s laying out those requirements and thinking about which elements are more important than the other. For instance, is it more important to have the data moved all the time, or is it OK if that happens once in a while? Does the data have to move in two directions or just one? All of these will help that answer jump right out. Try it sometime – it’s a great learning exercise, since it will force you to focus on filling out the matrix.</p> <p>The answer is out there, Neo.</p>ROI and the DBAhttp://sqlblog.com/blogs/buck_woody/archive/2010/03/04/roi-and-the-dba.aspxThu, 04 Mar 2010 13:46:00 GMT21093a07-8b3d-42db-8cbf-3350fcbf5496:22825BuckWoody<P>I love them three-letter acronyms! </P>
<P>An “ROI” is a Return On Investment – it’s a basic financial calculation that places investments in a standard number so that they can be compared. If the number is positive, then it has a “good” return on investment, and if it’s negative, you probably shouldn’t make the investment. The basic form of the calculation looks like this: </P>
<P><STRONG>ROI = [(<EM>Payback</EM> - <EM>Investment</EM>)/Investment)]*100</STRONG></P>
<P>There are, of course, variations. </P>
<P>So what does this have to do with the Data Professional? Well, right now IT is being asked to consolidate, reduce costs, eliminate headcount, all kinds of moves to “save money”. But is anybody checking to see if any of that really works?</P>
<P>Don’t get me wrong – I’m all about saving money, and definitely about using every resource as much you can. Peg those CPU’s, spin those drives, cloud that app, virtualize those servers. But don’t do it for activity’s sake – learn how to do an ROI, and do some hard comparisons. In fact, ROI’s should be combined to form another calculation, called <EM>Compound Return.</EM> This lets you know about all of the savings combined. </P>
<P>Something you’ll notice in the ROI calculation – there’s no mention of <EM>time</EM>. There are a couple of ways to deal with this – you can factor the time as a part of <EM>Payback</EM>, or you can use the <EM>Investment</EM> part as a time calculation. How you do that depends on how you price out time.</P>
<P>So when you’re done estimating the ROI of one decision over another, don’t forget to come back and test your assumptions. This is the part I see done the least. Once the decisions are made, it can be “dangerous” to come back and see if it really saved any money – but it’s a step you need to take. </P>